Weagle fans career-high 15 to lead Ravens to 7-1 win in opener Franklin Pierce out-slugs Yellow Jackets, 21-10 in nightcap

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (May 4, 2002) - Franklin Pierce clinched playoff berth with a doubleheader sweep over American International College in Northeast-10 Conference baseball action at AIC Park this afternoon.

In game one, sophomore right-hander Matt Weagle (Charlton, Mass./Shepherd Hill) picked up his fourth-straight win (4-5) as he kept the AIC bats quiet to lead Franklin Pierce to victory. Weagle allowed just one earned run, scattering eight hits, as he fanned a career-best 15 batters and walked just one in the complete game effort.

Junior designated hitter Chris Shank (Westminster, Mass./Oakmont Regional) sparked the Ravens offense hitting three-for-four with a double, a run scored and two RBIs. Senior Scott Loiseau (Worcester, Mass./St. Peter Marian) hit 3-5 with a homerun, while freshman Eric Cavers (Otisfield, Maine/Oxford Hills) finished 2-4 with a homer and two RBIs.

Senior Brian Maloney and junior Adam Kramer each hit 2-3 for AIC. Maloney registered a double and a triple. Junior Nick Eldridge batted 2-4 and scored the Yellow Jackets lone run.

Freshman Jeff Davenport suffered the loss (2-1) as he was touched for seven earned runs on 11 hits with four strikeouts and three walks in 6.1 innings of work.

Batteries:
FP - Matt Weagle and Eric Cavers.
AIC - Jeff Davenport, John Ferry (7th) and Josh Bartlett.

WP: Weagle (4-5)
LP: Davenport (2-1)
HR: Loiseau (10), Callahan (5), Cavers (5).

In the nightcap, Franklin Pierce staked out a 10-3 lead after six and a half innings and cruised to its fifth-straight victory. The Ravens rapped 20 hits to finish with 34 safeties for the twinbill.

Callahan sparked the Ravens by hitting 4-5 with a double, a homer, four runs scored and four RBIs. Sophomore Dante Blancarte (Amesbury, Mass./Amesbury) finished 3-6 with a double, three runs scored and an RBI, while freshman Bear Dunn (Charlton, Mass./Shepherd Hill) was 2-5 with a double, a homer and four RBIs. Cavers rounded out the doubleheader with a 2-5 effort, with a homer and three RBIs, extending his team-best hitting streak to 12 games.

Freshman A.J. Hatton (Hudson, Mass./Hudson) earned the win (2-3) on the mound as he allowed nine runs, just five earned, on ten hits with six strikeouts and a walk in 6.1 innings of work.

Maloney had another strong game for AIC as he was 2-4 with a double, a homer and two RBIs. Senior Jeff Watsonhit 2-4 with a double and an RBI, while junior Josh Bartlett was 1-5 with two runs scored, a homer and three RBIs.

Freshman Paul Thompson suffered the loss as he yielded six runs, five earned, on seven hits and three walks in 3.1 innings.

Batteries:
FP - A.J. Hatton, Greg Basile (7th) and Al Medeiros.
AIC - Paul Thompson, Mike Cabrera (4th), Paul De Maria (6th), Denny Pratt (8th), John Ferry (9th) and Josh Bartlett.

WP: Hatton (2-3)
LP: Thompson (1-4) HR: Loiseau (11), Callahan (6), Cavers (6), Dunn (3), Maloney (4), Bartlett (5).

The Ravens clinched a Northeast-10 Conference playoff berth with the sweep and Southern Connecticut State splitting with Markey Division-leading Bryant College this afternoon in Smithfield, R.I. Franklin Pierce could still finish as high as first place in the Division as they sit just one game in the loss column behind both Bryant and College of Saint Rose, who swept a Conference twinbill with Assumption College this afternoon. Bryant has just one game remaining on its schedule, while Saint Rose still has three games remaining.

Franklin Pierce (28-16, 21-10 NE-10) and AIC (18-24, 13-17 NE-10) round out their four-game weekend series tomorrow afternoon with a single game at Crystal Field at 1 p.m.